After the announcement of Arsenal’s 25-man pre-season squad on Sunday, it seems increasingly likely that Mathieu Debuchy is on his way out.

Despite his inclusion in the initial pre-season training sessions, Debuchy has been left off the list of players heading to Sydney this week.

Originally signed from Newcastle in 2014, Debuchy has had a rocky road with the Gunners. The main disruption to his time in North London has been injuries, but even on returning from injury late last season, there was no place for Mathieu in the new first-team setup.

The five-year contract agreed to in 2014 leaves another two years remaining, which will surprise Arsenal fans who have been reading about the 31-year-old’s likely exit for much of the previous two years.

But at this stage, Arsenal’s intentions are clear. Rather than give places to players who won’t be making first team appearances, Arsène has opted to give youth players the chance to step up.

Young prospects like Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Cohen Bramall will benefit far more from the first-team opportunity than those on the way out.

Disappointing as it is to see what seemed like a strong signing in 2014 end up like this, it’s time for Arsenal and Debuchy to move on. We hope he finds the club for him and we wish him well in the future.